American Expatriates At a Loss What to Threaten To Do If Romney Is Elected

PRAGUE – As the 2012 U.S. presidential election approaches, the possibility of a win by Republican Mitt Romney is a cause for fear and concern among many liberal Americans across the country.

Among those most worried, however, are U.S. citizens who have already left the country to live abroad and thus now find them-selves at a loss as to what they can threaten to do in the event of a Romney victory.

“I would definitely say that I’m leaving the country if Romney is elected,” said Neil Woodward, 41, an American working as an English teacher here in the Czech capital. “But, unfortunately, I already did that after the Supreme Court unjustly handed the election to Bush in 2000.”

Mr. Woodward added, “I say ‘unfortunately’, but the truth is that getting out of the U.S. 12 years ago was probably the smartest decision I ever made. With its universal health care, decriminalized marijuana, and near total lack of religion and guns, life here in the Czech Republic is pretty sweet, especially compared to the situation back home in Texas.”

Mr. Woodward’s sentiments were echoed by Kimberly Adams, a 34-year-old writer from Wilmington, Delaware, who moved to the Czech Republic from the U.S. in 2004 following President Bush’s reelection victory over Sen. John Kerry in 2004.

“I swore that I couldn’t bear to live in a country governed by a man who had ruthlessly distorted and smeared the reputation of an American war hero,” said Ms. Adams. “But, now, having lived up to that vow, I’m not sure what more I could do to protest a Romney presidency, if, God forbid, such a thing were to occur.”

“I guess I could say that I’m not coming back to the U.S. if Romney wins,” commented James O’Malley, 52, who left the U.S. in disgust in 1991 following the country’s delirious celebrations in the wake of its massacre of tens of thousands of Iraqis in the first Gulf War. “But having already lived happily here in Prague for the past 20 years, it’s pretty obvious that I’m not going back there no matter what happens in November.”

The American expatriates made their comments as they gathered at a Prague pub for a memorial in honor of the late Martin Edwards, an American journalist who passed away in early August after having lived in Prague on and off for more than 40 years.

“Martin first left America after Reagan was elected in 1980,” noted Mr. O’Malley. “He kept trying to go back, but he ended up leaving again in 1984, 1988, 2000 and then in 2004, when he finally gave up.”

“Lately he’d been thinking of going back because of Obama, and he definitely would have left again if Romney got elected,” added Mr. Woodward. “But now he’ll never have that chance.”